Phased array antenna systems, such as modern radar systems, require addressing each and every element in the entire phased array by using signals having a common frequency but with different amplitude and phase characteristics. This allows formation of a transmission beam having a specified width that can be directed toward a target of interest. Specification of the required transmission beam often requires obtaining a Fourier image of the required direction on the phase front of the antenna aperture, where aperture is just the distribution of the antenna elements over a physical antenna surface.
The transmission frequency of each antenna element needs to be carefully controlled to assure that the different amplitude and phase characteristics associated with each antenna element are predictable in forming the transmission beam. Ideally, it would be advantageous to use a common RF transmission source and deliver the output of this RF transmission source to every antenna element in the antenna phased array. However, the requirement to generally alter both the amplitude and phase of the transmission signals and deliver them to their associated antenna elements often becomes practically problematical due to RF domain components that add too much error, distortion or loss. These result in deterioration of the desired attributes for the transmission beam and a corresponding loss in desired performance for the system.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is an enhanced beamforming architecture that overcomes the limitations of current systems.